As the PVHS school year starts up again, the school faces multiple food shortages due to transportation issues.
On Sept. 15, 2021, senior Anna Penniston was denied lunch due to a food shortage within the school district. Penniston was coming back from her course at Scott Community College and went to the cafeteria to grab lunch before her next class began.
“I asked the lunch ladies if there were meal items and one individual frantically said, ‘Sorry, we’re all out.’ This made me upset and frustrated because I was having a long day and I was hungry and ready to eat,” Penniston said.
Penniston’s case was one of many throughout the school.
Aaron Shannon, PV’s Food Service Manager, shared his knowledge on this issue. “The main issue was the distributor, warehouse, and our delivery drivers; they were short handed. A lot of the workers quit and because of the pandemic, they weren’t coming in,” Shannon said.
This labor shortage that Shannon described is prominent throughout the whole country. The insufficiency was caused mostly by the resounding effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As the country started opening up again, companies have begun putting more pressure on workers while keeping the wages the same. Many of these workers thought that using unemployment benefits until they found a better job would be better than working extra hours with no increase in payment.
To fix this issue with food delivery shortages, Andrea Mahler, PV’s Food Service Director, suggested that the PV school board should terminate their contract with their food distributor, Kohl Wholesale Distributor. This also caused the school to leave the school’s current food cooperation, Eatern Iowa School Food Cooperative.
On Sept. 13, 2021, the school board carried out this idea and left the group. “We left our old group and joined the AEA Food Purchasing Cooperative because of the driver issues with Kohl Wholesale. Now, our distributing company is Martin Brothers Distributing Company,” Mahler clarified.
With this new change, more people are optimistic of the future for the school food service. “We checked our sources and we’re certain that these issues won’t happen again with our new food distributor. Now, all the students can enjoy all our food again,” Mahler expressed. This optimism of the food shortage is vital for the school, moving forward.
Although the problem has been resolved in our district, the country is still plagued with a labor shortage. Only time will tell how the labor shortage problem will be resolved so America can go back to normalcy again.
Tais Araujo • Oct 14, 2021 at 12:47 pm
I really like this article! super informative and also opened my eyes a little more to the labor crises and how seriously it has effected us and where.
Jack • Oct 6, 2021 at 8:12 pm
It is eye opening to see that covid even affects us here at PV in ways other than just our health. I have to agree that seeing that there is no water or sides in the cafeteria can really change your mood quickly.
Sam Bebow • Oct 1, 2021 at 12:28 pm
Wow great article lots of PV students are complaining about the lunch including myself. I didnt know the pandemic still made such an impact. Nice article!!
Luke Wang • Sep 24, 2021 at 4:40 pm
I am glad people are speaking out and making articles over this topic. Since I have D lunch we do not have as near the options since by the time D lunch comes around everything is typically sold out. I like how you interviewed the food service director at the High School to get her perspective on this topic.
Logan Garrison • Sep 24, 2021 at 12:04 pm
I thought this was a very interesting article to read. Food shortages at school are a huge deal considering a lot of students get breakfast and lunch at school. The effects we saw due to the shorthanded staff of that company is unacceptable to me, kids should never be denied food. However it does seem like the school handled it well and is working to make sure that never happens again.
Ethan McReynolds • Sep 24, 2021 at 10:26 am
This article really shows the problems behind the food shortages. I have heard from other students about the running out of lunch ,but this sheds a new light on it. It showed me the actual cause behind this issue that is happening at lunch.
Gavin Pangan • Sep 24, 2021 at 9:44 am
It is fascinating to see how the pandemic is directly influencing workers to quit because of pressure of their job as the limits of the virus are lifted. As someone who always brings their own lunch and is in a later lunch, the food shortage does not directly affect me but I do often trade food with friends who get lunch from the school. Are there any other shortages the school will see?
Charlie • Sep 23, 2021 at 6:29 pm
Very intrigued with this article, the statements surrounding there being a shortage of food at the high school has already become familiar to me. The schools circumstances aren’t ideal for every student, not all food options are available to anyone that is in a later lunch such as C or D. I’m sure most of this problem funnels from big businesses not being able to produce and serve per usual pre-COVID. It is nice to know that the school made a plan and brought action to it by replacing their food supplier.
Abby • Sep 23, 2021 at 8:31 am
This article is very interesting and is honestly not surprising. I have heard many students say that there is barely any food at lunch. This is concerning to hear as I have A lunch, the chances of kids in c lunch and d lunch will definitely be short on food options. With the pandemic a huge side effect that is impacting everyone is the short staffing of many businesses which is directly impacting our supply chain. I have high hopes this next distributor we switched to will help decrease the chances of running out of food.